Black Tears
by Suave-Aurora
Summary: A deeper look into the complex and complicated life of our favorite death eater Bellatrix LestrangeBlack. A look into her life during Hogwarts and after...and all the crucial moments in between. : Please read!
1. Black Moments

Title: Black Tears

Author: SuaveAurora

Comment: All right, I'm bored/tired so I decided to write this for my favorite HP character. :-) This is going to be kinda long but I want to follow some crucial moments of this persons life that I think end up defining/explaining the character a bit more in depth. So…yeah, this chapter is pretty long but it's just for a background example of who we're dealing with :-) All right, comment please!

* * *

_It was a positively gloomy day outside. The clouds were darkened and heavy with the anticipation of a rainfall. It was murky, foggy, misty, all the terrible elements that make up a dreadful storm. The three girls had been playing outside, underneath the large willow tree, when their mother had sent a nurse-maid out to fetch them. "The sky's looking a bit menacing," the woman explained to the disgruntled girls. "Your mother wants you inside before you catch a cold in this terrible weather." The eldest girl, a proper (albeit plain) brunette with gentle eyes, a kind face, and sympathetic behavior stood up first. She wasn't fond of storms; she rather preferred to be inside under the safety of her family's shelter, surrounded by her homely comforts._

_"Come inside," She called to her two remaining sisters. "It's getting cold out here and at least inside we can play dolls or have a tea party! I'm sure mother would let us dress up in some of her fancier clothes-"  
_

_The other girl, the youngest in the family, also stood up. She had long, flowing blonde hair that reached down her back. It accented her pale, porcelain, doll-like skin and posture. She was as fragile as a little doll, as shaped and groomed as one. She shook a bit of dirt off of her white gown and took her eldest sister's hand. She called out to the remaining sister, "Come on inside! I'd stay out but if it starts raining my hair will get wet! I'll be dreadfully uncomfortable and mother will throw a fit if she sees my ruined gown. Let's go inside, get warm, and then come back out!" _

_The wind started to howl and heavy rain drops begin their descent from the clouds. The remaining girl stood up as well. Her long, thick black hair was swaying in the wind. Her pale skin starkly contrasted to her flashing black eyes that seemed to scream out a thousand different emotions than the ones her voice conveyed. She spoke, slowly and with purpose, a bored drawl that masked itself from betraying any emotions. "You two go inside. I don't mind a bit of rain." Her sister's protested, but the dark haired girl held up a thin, pale hand marked with emerald rings and said in her monotonous voice, "No, really. I prefer it like this."_

_

* * *

_

The dark haired girl had grown over the years. Her hair had gotten longer, her face had developed into sharper features, her eyes had gotten colder and all in all she was an older, more mature, and more clever girl. She sat on her warm bed, in front of a crackling fire, and slowly brushed her hair. She was very proud of her raven like mane and took care to brush it every night. She wasn't as vain as her youngest sister, no, there was no doubt about that, but she was proud of the attributes that she had. She could always be counted on to use them to her best advantage.

She stared into the fire. She tried to figure out shapes and forms for the orange and red flames to morph into. She had played this game countless of times when it was dark and she was feeling lonely in her large room. Pretending was always a good escape from every day life. Pretending helped to mask the feelings of loneliness and other weaknesses that sometimes overtook her.

She heard footsteps walking up the long staircase by her bedroom and waited for her mother's sharp voice to reach her. "Darling, do come downstairs. You've been holed up in your room for the past hour and I daresay there are better ways to waste your time. Besides, your aunt and cousins are here and seeing as though they _are_ family it would be nice to make a bit of an impression." Her mother's words could not conceal the coldness beneath them. Cassiopeia was not a very expressive woman and, although tossed around words like 'love' and 'dear', meant absolutely none of it. She was cold hearted, prim and proper and had no time for nonsensical things such as hugs and words of meaningful endearment. Of course, this didn't bother a single person in the household but is worth mentioning all the same.

The girl rolled her dark eyes, but placed her brush beside her bed and stepped on the wooden floor regardless. She was wearing her favorite black dress with lace near the breast and lengthy sleeves with emerald brooches on the tips. She had no time to glance in the mirror and check that she looked proper; her aunt and cousins were waiting downstairs and there wasn't a person alive who could say her aunt was a patient woman.

* * *

"Darling!" The woman, Aracaeli, called as soon as she saw her niece walking dutifully down the stairs. "Well if it isn't my," She lowered her voice to a pretense whisper, "favorite niece! How have you been, love? Excited to finally join your sister at Hogwarts?" The girl nodded grimly. As much as she enjoyed her aunts company she wasn't interested in a lengthy conversation. All of a sudden, a boy with black, shaggy hair that fell in front of his mischievous eyes, walked into the room. He was eating an apple smugly, as his arrogant eyes scanned the room eventually landing on his cousin's stiff form. Checking to make sure his mother wasn't looking over at him, the boy made a face at the girl, laughing at the expression of shock and rage on her face. Aracaeli glanced over at him to see what the matter was, but got an innocent look in exchange.

"Charming boy you've got." The girl said with an even voice. Aracaeli shrugged her bony shoulders and began a conversation with Cassiopeia on the effects of Muggles and the price of dressing gowns. The boy gave the girl a small shrug and sheepish grin, which she returned. Ah, how she had missed Sirius.

* * *

"Well if it isn't my favorite niece!" Sirius taunted her as she walked alongside him outside. She gave him a cool look in exchange. He laughed. "Come on, Bella, I dare you. What can the 'great and renowned' Bellatrix Black ever do to me?"

Bellatrix didn't reply but gave him one of her secretive looks. He rolled his eyes in exasperation and decided a better tactic to annoy his cousin was to begin bantering with her.

"I sincerely hope you drop this silence before we go to Hogwarts, Bella. It's quite aggravating." She laughed.

"Only for you, dear cousin." They continued walking a little way further. "So where is that little brother of yours? Regulus still sulking because he can't come with us when school starts?"

Sirius scowled. "Don't even begin to poke fun, you have no idea what it's like to have someone hanging onto your sleeves day and night begging, ranting, screaming about how "it's not fair." I swear...it's a good thing mother's here or I'd have hexed the-"

Bellatrix smiled. "Narcissa, remember? At least she's only a year younger and a bit more bearable. Well it won't matter, anyways. At least you and I'll be together at Hogwarts. Poor Andromeda, off by herself and a _Ravenclaw_ as well! At least she wasn't a Hufflepuff, or worse, a Gryffindor!"

"You act as though you know all about it." Sirius sulked. "Anyways, from what _I_'ve heard, it'll be a pleasure to just get away from home."

Bellatrix stopped walking and stared at her dark haired cousin, almost identical in features to herself. "Things like this matter, Sirius." She said in her low, careful voice. "Things like this end up _defining_ us. It's all about whom you're friends with, who you're loyal to, and what side you choose."

Sirius stared at his cousin as though trying to figure something out. He shrugged his concentration off after a while and, with a spark in his eyes, decided to continue teasing her. "I'll just laugh when you end up getting sorted into Hufflepuff, after all."

Bellatrix didn't laugh but instead looked deep in her cousin's eyes and with an unmentionable amount of coldness in her voice she replied, "I will accept nothing but the best. And Slytherin, my dear cousin, is just that; the best."


	2. Black Hearts

Title: Black Tears

Author: Suave Aurora

Comments: None

* * *

The train station was crowded with people of all ages, many of them eager eleven year olds about to embark on their first journey to Hogwarts. Bellatrix Black was one of those many first years. She was standing beside her mother and her youngest sister in front of the train. Her mother was giving her a few last words of encouragement, no, rather lecturing her on proper manners and behavior that she would need to keep in mind at all times. Bella nodded her head in perfect timing to her mother's chiming voice. When her cue to leave had finally arrived, she gave her mother a slight peck on the cheek and hugged Narcissa. Out of the two Black women seeing her and Andromeda off, Bellatrix knew that she'd miss Narcissa the most.

Andromeda accompanied her sister onto the train. "Are you eager for Hogwarts? I know we'll have a wonderful time, Bella! Oh, you won't imagine the things that you'll see! Moving staircases and mysterious doors! And the ghosts-oh Bella, did I tell you about the ghosts?" Bella gave a tight-lipped smile and shook her head. Of course she had heard all of this before, countless times from Andromeda's own mouth, but it wouldn't do her any harm to listen to it again. Her sister was so very excited to have her own flesh and blood, a Black family member, at school with her after such a long time away from them all.

As Andromeda rambled on about Hogwarts, she placed Bellatrix's suitcases along with her own in an overhead compartment. Bella assumed that was where her sister was planning on sitting with her friends, because there was no way that Bella was going to continue this conversation in a closed space surrounded by those silly Ravenclaw girls. Her mother had already warned her about the _other_ houses and she knew what was to be gained by being friendly to them. Absolutely nothing.

"Meda, I see Sirius, I'm going to go say hi." Bellatrix politely excused herself from her sister and began to walk down the corridor to where she had seen her black haired cousin. He was sitting in a separate compartment with two boys that he had apparently befriended. One was a scrawny looking boy with disheveled hair and curiously bright eyes. He had glasses which, strangely enough, only made him more appealing. Sitting in front of Sirius was a boy who looked slightly ill, with a bit of a pale tinge to his skin. He had long hair, similar to Sirius's, and tattered robes. If Bella wasn't mistaken he had that same hungry look in his eyes as that of a werewolf on a full moon…she shook that thought from her mind. If these were Sirius's friends, chances were they were as mischievous as anything…but utterly harmless.

"Hello Sirius." She said with an even voice. She didn't choose to sit down, although the boys made room. Sirius glanced up at her with a slightly guilty expression. He muttered something coherent to "hellobellatrix." Bella arched an eyebrow. She waited to be introduced.

Reluctantly Sirius mumbled, "This is James Potter and Remus Lupin." Bella smiled at both of the boys and said a polite hello, but all the while she kept noticing her cousin's utterly strange behavior. Why was he acting as though he were, as absurd as this sounded, _ashamed_ of her? She kept waiting for him to make a reply, to say something in order to put her at ease as he so often did, but he just sat there looking like a sheepish dog.

"Um, Bellatrix, I think Andromeda was looking for you a while ago…" Sirius said quietly. Bellatrix stared at him. Without venom dripping on every word she replied,

"Oh. Well, I suppose I'd better be on my way. I'm sorry that I dared intrude upon you, dearest _cousin_." With a huff she stalked out of the compartment but still managed to hear,

"_That's_ your cousin? You're related to a _Black_?"

"Stick with us, mate, we don't mind a bit of a tainted background ourselves. Can't always choose your family, I suppose." All echoed by laughter; Sirius's included.

* * *

Bellatrix had never felt so enraged. How dare those ridiculous boys consider even _thinking_ that a Black was inferior to them. The Potters? She'd heard of them, they had some prestige, yes, but not nearly the fame and fortune as her own had. And who in the world even knew what a _Lupin_ was? _I don't even know why this bothers me so much. Although those fools ought to know who to insult and who to stay clear of, I guess we can't all be fortunate enough to have been born with such knowledge. But Sirius? _Bella felt, in some sense, betrayed by her cousin. The entire summer they had talked about how they were going to have such a great time at Hogwarts and all of the adventures they'd go on and all the fun that they'd have. _And now here he is, pretending as though he doesn't even know who I am. I should have expected this of him…what a traitor, what a terrible, terrible traitor. _

She walked to an empty compartment and sat down, her black robes flowing around her. She hated Hogwarts before she had even reached it. Already she had lost one of her dearest friends over his…insane rationalizing that a Black wasn't good enough for his friends. She leaned her head against the window pane and was about to close her eyes and take a long nap, when the compartment doors suddenly swung open. Half expecting (half hoping) that Sirius would come bounding in offering her all sorts of explanations; she was surprised to see three boys and a girl walk in.

The girl was thin and tall with silvery white hair and a regal look on her face. She had clear, glowing blue eyes. With a smile, she took the seat beside Bella. "Do you mind?" She asked stiffly.

Bella didn't answer but considered her for a moment. "No, you may stay." The girl seemed to visibly relax after Bella's hard scrutinizing. "My name's Celeste, Celeste Vanche."

A tall, older boy with long blonde hair held out his hand with a smug look. "Lucius Malfoy." He stated as though it were the most important thing in the world, which, to him, it probably was.

Out of the other two boys, one was dark haired and tan skinned, a Russian with piercing eyes. He was introduced as 'Antonin Dolohov'. The last boy was somewhat…_charming_, Bellatrix thought. He was medium height with a crafty look in his eyes and soft brown hair.

"And you are?" She pointedly asked as the boy sat down without introduction, giving her only a teasing look.

"Rodolphus Lestrange. Pleasure to meet you, Bellatrix."

* * *

It took a bit longer than expected to pass over the giant lake and step inside of Hogwarts. Bellatrix had to give her eldest sister some credit, they had barely even seen the inside of the school and already she was noticing stranger and stranger things; like a giant squid (or a tentacle of) in the lake, a giant of a man with a strange accent, and horseless carriages. _Magic at its best,_ she decided.

The Great Hall was filled with people, apparently of all ages and Houses. They were seated at long tables and were waiting for the first years to come to a platform and place on a-

_A hat? How ridiculous_. Bella thought to herself as she eyed it disdainfully. _Why should such a tattered thing decide one of the most important moments of my life? For shame…it ought to have been a beautiful golden crown or something with a bit more glamour rather than this, this, abomination._ She sighed. She would have to get used to some of Hogwarts more…plain and simple methods.

"When I call your names please come forward and place the Sorting Hat onto your head so as to be sorted into whichever house best suits you." A stately looking witch shouted over the rim of her glasses. "Ackerman, Caprice." A beautiful girl walked up to the hat and placed it on her head. After a few moments the hat yelled out; _yes, it actually yelled_, Bellatrix laughed to herself, "SLYTHERIN". The emerald clad table shouted out as they welcomed their new housemate. After Anderson, Alohin, Avery, and Bane; Bellatrix was eagerly awaiting her chance. "Black, Bellatrix," The portly witch called.

Bella walked slowly up to the platform, although inside she was nearly bursting. This would prove her ambition, her cunning and her cleverness. This would prove her standing as a Black.

She noticed her sister watching her with careful eyes, as well as the entire table of Slytherins with their leering and invasive looks. With a steady breath she reached for the hat and placed it on her head.

_Ah, another Black I see. _

I suppose so.

_I had your sister only, what was it, two years ago? Intelligent girl, that Andromeda Black…_

Bellatrix was beginning to get angry. For goodness sakes, this had _nothing _to do with Meda.

That's wonderful, let's move on shall we?

_Impatient, I can see. Well, fine. Let's see….there's loyalty, yes. There's a loyalty within you that runs very deeply…_

Loyalty? You _can't_ be considering Hufflepuff.

_Hm. You're right…that's a loyalty unbefitting of Hufflepuff. A loyalty to family and to pride…but yes, you're right. Not loyal enough for that house. Well, there's always bravery-no, no. Not brave enough…I'm afraid you'd choose what is easy over what is right…_

What **are** you babbling about? Can't we just hurry up and choose?

_Tut tut, very impatient. Well, Bellatrix Black, what house would you think best?_

Slytherin.

_Slytherin?_

Yes. Slytherin.

_Hmm, there's that desire to prove yourself, the ambition, the power, the cleverness and the pride…all very fitting attributes to being a Slytherin…are you sure about this?_

Very sure.

_One thing is for certain; you'll go far in Slytherin…you may not go correctly, but you shall go far…very well then…I suppose you'd fit best in _SLYTHERIN.

Naturally.

A/N: Sorry it's a bit long...Bellatrix's character is going to develop but for the moment remember that she's only 11 so that's why I've got her kind of…one dimensional (I'm not insulting eleven year olds, I'm more like insulting my own writing lol). All right. Comment please.


End file.
